[10 May] One of my last few visits as an undergraduate..

Today, Chanel, Zihui and I went to find Mdm CSK and was warmly greeted by her “惠玉啊, 你来了啊~ (Huiyu, you are here~)” [ps: my name isn’t huiyu, but she associates me with local artiste Zoe Tay cos we have the same surname haha]. That familiar voice is one that I will never forget, and one of many things that kept me coming back on Saturdays for the last four years. :') Looking back, I recall how our seniors always warned us to be careful when tidying Mdm CSK’s house because she was very OCD about which cloth to use, which detergent to use, the layout of her furniture, etc. She hasn’t changed a bit these years. And instead of feeling afraid, I felt happy to be ‘scolded’ by her because it means she feels comfortable enough to tell us so. This is the charm of Mdm CSK haha. So, as usual, we did some cleaning of her windows, chairs and floor today. She also treated us to drinks and told us stories about how she got married off to JB and settled back in Singapore in 1991 after she got her Singapore I/C (which she proudly showed us). Another thing that’s awesome about Mdm CSK is that she lives up to the ‘活到老 学到老’ (lifelong learning) spirit. Even at her age, she still learns different languages like English and Chinese, and tries to improve her proficiency by speaking to us in these languages. She also volunteers regularly, helping other elderly with the buying of groceries or even going to old folks’ homes to perform. She’s really so ‘happening’ and active (speaking of which, she was preparing to go for a Sentosa trip after we left her house)!

 

Next, we went to visit Mr TSH. He was on his way for lunch when we arrived. So paiseh, cos he made a detour to invite us into his house. Mr TSH is another legendary character as he is a walking encyclopedia and historian. He never fails to enlighten us on worldwide politics and WWII experiences he had gone through. And so, we talked about local anti-Jap forces led by Lim Bo Seng, the merger and separation with Malaysia, NanJing massacre, Thai politics, etc. It was really enriching just listening to Mr TSH’s stories and insights on these topics, and his knowledge never fails to awe me.

Quoting Jeraldine, it is really great to be back after the short hiatus due to exams. Today is probably one of my last few visits as an undergraduate. :’( THES was the first RVP I joined, and I have never regretted my choice since. And I believe many of you will agree that while it may seem like a commitment to come back on Saturdays at first, it soon becomes a ‘habit’ and a part of your life to do so. The familiar sights and sounds become something that you really really look forward after each tiring week of school/work. :’) The bonds forged with our elderly through these four years as well as lessons learnt from them and our fellow volunteers are invaluable things I will treasure for life. It is really miraculous how we are able to share these bonds with our elderly, isn’t it? So, I’ll be back for more! Will you? ;)

Yinmin :)